The Province of British Columbia is providing the following preliminary estimates of immediate economic benefit to B.C. as a result of the Times of India Film Awards (TOIFA).

The following preliminary breakdown of production impacts has been provided by The Times Group:

• 6000 - direct and indirect employees hired in British Columbia to stage TOIFA events

• 24 - number of local corporations contracted to provide services to the Times of India Group in British Columbia (including security, ground transportation, media relations, catering, technical support, logistics, printing)

• 3000 - hotel room nights booked by the Times Group in Vancouver for TOIFA

The following preliminary value estimates of travel media coverage of B.C. in India between November through March were provided by the Canadian Tourism Commission:

• $4.5 million in The Economic Times travel section

• $1.6 million in non-Times Group newspapers

• $725,500 from articles or mentions in various magazines

• TOTAL: $6.8 million of travel media coverage of B.C. in Indian print publications

The Canadian Tourism Commission estimates that B.C. earned approximately $446,000 of media value in the Economic Times for two multi-page inserts prepared by the Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training promoting investment and trade with British Columbia and which ran in December and March.

The Times Group estimates that at least twelve print news stories mentioning B.C. or Vancouver ran in Times Group newspapers across India during and immediately following TOIFA (this early estimate does not include news stories which ran in media outlets not owned by the Times Group and also does not include radio or television broadcasts from Times Group or any other media outlets).

• A front page picture caption in The Times of India, the world's most-read English-language newspaper.

• A feature article in The Economic Times, the world's second most-read financial daily behind the Wall Street Journal.

Upcoming activities will generate further exposure:

• TV broadcast of TOIFA and rebroadcasts (total estimated viewership is 400 million)

• One remaining insert in the Economic Times promoting trade with British Columbia in June (Canadian Tourism Commission estimated value: $223,000)

• Continuing collaboration with travel agents in India to promote British Columbia as a tourist destination.

One more TOIFA activity is planned. It is a television travelogue focused on British Columbia attractions with a Bollywood celebrity. Filming will take place in B.C. in May and will air in India at a later date.

Media Contact:

Media Relations
Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training and Responsible for Labour
250 387-2799